WAVES is the result of the "emotional rollercoaster" that was 2021, born from watching someone very close to me suffer Postnatal Depression. A time so full of joy for the new life, so full of pain for a life changed beyond recognition.

Tom Robinson selected 'WAVES' for his mixtape, 31st Jan 2022, which went out on BBC 6music. BBC Radio Norfolk selected it as their BBC Introducing 'Record of the Week' that same week.

Credits:
Written: Marina Florance
Vocals/Guitar: Marina Florance
Produced/Guitar: Ben Walker
Strings: Anna Jenkins, Basia Bartz and Jo Silverston
Cover: Marina Florance, Cardiff Bay one misty November morning

Reviews:
"This is a new sound I'm calling Earthy Folk & it's heart aching beautiful, I absolutely love it" Johnno Casson @snippetcuts

"She's got one of those voices like I guess all great folk singers do that just evoke so much feeling..." "...just stunning" Kitty Perrin BBC Introducing Norfolk

"Marina knows her voice so well & writes to suit it – a low register but not quite husky & a deliberate not-quite crack in the last verse as she gets to the end. Superb." Folking.com
lyrics
I sailed on a sea of green
I sailed on a sea of blue
swam in the sea of hopeless
was lost in the ocean of you

I sailed on a sea of sacrifice
where fear of failure abounds
drifted on the sea of broken dreams
as the tides of change howled

short instrumental

I sailed on the sea of lonely
I sailed on the sea of drowned
swam an ocean of fallen tears
when a wall of waves tore me down

I sailed on the sea of loss
where no hope would be found
held fast in an ocean of your love
on fair winds to firmer ground

instrumental

we sail on the sea of green
we sail on the sea of blue
eased in to the sea of hopeful
was saved by the ocean of you
was saved by the ocean of you

WAVES

Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/artist/79EKPC75ayNxXg6AWQ8WGg
https://www.marinaflorance.com/
Recorded in the Living Room on a Tascam DR05 handheld recorder I wasn't holding at the time.

Leonard Cohen Cover - Dance Me To The End Of Love

Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/artist/79EKPC75ayNxXg6AWQ8WGg
Buy the track to support the work of The Warm and Toasty Club 
https://thewarmandtoastyclub.bandcamp.com/releases
Written by Marina Florance & Jules Fox Allen 
https://www.marinaflorance.com/
Song commissioned by The Warm and Toasty Club for the Coast to Coast Project.
Written after attending Warm and Toasty memory afternoons at Havencroft Court, Walton On The Naze. Via Coast to Coast  project which is funded by Arts Council England , the Big Lottery Fund, Heritage Lottery Fund, Essex County Council and Grassroots Charity. 
The afternoons were engaging & entertaining. We chatted, we laughed, we drank tea & ate biscuits AND had a great time revelling in the stories from everyone's past(including our own).
This was positive, face to face engagement that was not only enjoyable but also captured people centred positive stories of days gone by for future generations to listen to.
Lyrics:
Verse 1
All aboard the charabanc 
the fun starts here,
leave our troubles behind us 
on the road my dear,
sticks of rock & candy floss 
for our days away,
got our jam sandwiches & lemonade
Chorus
Times back then were happy,
some a little sad, but now 
we’re all friends together 
down on the Naze
& the sea softly sings 
its serenade, oh the sea
softly sings its serenade
Verse 2
Mothers knitted costume looked a treat,
but by the end of the day 
it was big enough for three,
down at All Hallows on a muddy beach,
long summer days down by the sea
Chorus
Verse 3
Up early in the morning 
sat on a milking stool, 
we worked hard but happy
not to go to school, 
fields of hops & old sack cloths
we made our beds, top to toe 
we laid down our sleepy heads
Chorus 
Verse 4
Hopscotch, skipping ropes, 
& camps in the wood,
getting up to mischief 
in any way we could,
stolen kisses, sneaky fags, 
those were the days,
if he only knew, 
what would your father say
Chorus
Verse 5
Left school on a Friday,
Monday started work, 
May & Bakers all lined up, 
we didn’t shirk, listening to 
the Beatles & the Rolling Stones,
workers playtime how the foreman 
used to moan
Chorus
Verse 6
Father was a carpenter in a velvet suit,
plum or electric blue 
depending on his mood,
London train to Foyles 
choose a new song he said,
cabaret & raindrops 
keep falling on my head
Chorus
Times back then were happy,
some a little sad, but now 
we’re all friends together 
down on the Naze
& the sea softly sings 
its serenade, oh the sea
softly sings its serenade
& the Tiara Girls smile every day,
down on the Naze

Credits: Down On The Naze - Florance/Fox-Allen (4:48) 
Marina Florance - LV, Guitar, Cajon, BVs 
Johnno Casson -Keys, BVs 
Based on the memories from Havencroft Court, Walton On The Naze

Coast To Coast

Down On THe Naze

Buy & Support

Down On The Naze

Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/artist/79EKPC75ayNxXg6AWQ8WGg
https://www.marinaflorance.com/
Written: FLorance/Fox Allen 
from the studio album 'Somewhere Down The Line'
Lyrics
In Orange:  
The last light has turned darkest black
All the anonymous faces have found their way back
Taking only the time we had to spare
Not wanting to share, not wanting to share
We could talk for hour upon hour 
Knowing the end will be the same
Drawing us so near another secret to be shared tonight
Only us to hear, only us to hear

Chorus
Take my words as truth 
And another lie will not be spoken
As a token of my love
Take my hands and we’ll go 
Slowly to the top of the stairs
There’s something there, there’s something there 
That we can both believe in 
In orange, in orange, in orange

All the life is flowing back to me 
Orange shades of memory 
Watching from above a shadow of you and me sends its love
The world fades away, the world fades away

Chorus

Sowewhere Down The Line

In Orange

From Marina's latest album 'fly beyond the border' featuring the voice of Johnno Casson.
Fiddle & Bass – Mark Jolley
LV/BVs - Marina Florance & Johnno Casson
All other instrumentation - Marina Florance
Recorded/Produced: Marina Florance
Written By: Marina Florance, Richard Pierce, Jules Fox Allen
Album Cover, Photography - Jon Clifton


Lyrics: 
Life goes on, that’s all they say,
To close our eyes is the only way,
There’s a woman and a child with a familiar face
they can see no sense in going on at all
They don’t know what all the fighting’s for
They could be any one of us
But they’re invisible

Will we be losing any sleep tonight
Will we be losing any sleep at all

Life goes on, that’s all they say
To close our eyes is the only way
There’s a man, gun in his hand, revenge in his heart
He looks at you from some wartorn place
A desperate man painted hate on his face
He could be any one of us
But he listened to their lies

Will we be losing any sleep tonight
Will we be losing any sleep at all

Life goes on, that’s all they say
To close our eyes is the only way
There’s a child with luck on her side, or so it would seem
Her future resides amongst those who have died
And those who have seen
She could be any one of us
But she’s invisible

Life goes on, that’s all they say
To close our eyes is the only way
There’s a woman, head in her hands, she falls to her knees
And where she used to live is razed to the ground
Her life’s possessions scattered around
She could be any one of us
Still listening to their lies

Will you be losing any sleep tonight
Will you be losing any sleep at all

Life goes on, or so they say.

fly beyond the border

247News ft Johnno Casson

247News - Ft Johnno Casson

This song was written for The Warm & Toasty Club & inspired by 
Memory Afternoons at Enoch House, Colchester, Essex.
Words & Music: Marina Florance & Jules Allen
https://www.marinaflorance.com/
Credits:
LVs, BVs, Cajon, Guitar, Keys - Marina Florance
BVs & Whistling - Gary Florance
Bass, Violin, BVs - Mark Jolley
Featuring the voices of residents of Enoch House Colchester

Lyrics:
Chorus
We've all got a tale to tell
Times were not always so well
But putting it all aside 
We made it through by and by

Verse 1
It’s warm and toasty in here
Share our laughter, sometimes tears 
You'll be welcomed with a cup of tea  
And a biscuit, maybe two or three

Verse 2
Wrapped in a little white cloth
Cooking for hours in the old iron pot
There’s a jam roly poly for tea 
Enough for you & dad & grandma & me

Break
What did we like the most
a fish paste sandwich
or peas on toast
And nothing could come close 
To bubble and squeak
the day after our Sunday roast

Chorus
We've all got a tale to tell
Times were not always so well
But putting it all aside 
We made it through by and by

Verse 3
The treat of the day from Mum
A whole penny to buy a bun          
Dad was a warden for the ARP
In his shadow & old tin hat 
Dennis would be

Verse 4
Porridge on the menu for Jan the Nan
Porridge again, again & again
But what were you gonna do
With a family of twenty-two

Verse 5
Waiting for Sunday tea
Freddie the Shrimp man, what will it be
Herrings, winkles and whelks 
From his barrow of the sea

Chorus
We've all got a tale to tell
Times were not always so well
But putting it all aside 
We made it through by and by

Instrumental… La La La Laaala

Repeat Verse 1
It’s warm and toasty in here
Share our laughter, sometimes tears 
You'll be welcomed with a cup of tea  
And a biscuit, maybe two…
Maybe two or three

Warm & Toasty

Written By: Marina Florance
Released on all streaming platforms Dec 14th 2020
Credits:
Marina Florance: Guitar, BVs, LV, Production and Mixing
Ben Walker: Resonator and Piano
Mark Jolley: Bass
Tobisonics: Mastering
Artwork Photography: Gary Florance
Lyrics
Too many dreams have been broken
too many hopes pushed aside
of all those words we’ve spoken
how many truths, how many lies
Lonely runs both ways
if I could read your mind
Oooh I’d know just what to say
know the words I should hide

What have we got right now
all that’s me, all that’s you
Gonna live my life right here in this moment
under a sky of blue, under sky of blue

But you can see right through me
and you can read my mind
and you know just what to say
know the words you should hide
But too many dreams have been broken
Your hopes pushed aside
and of all those words you’ve spoken
how many truths, how many lies

What have we got right now
all that’s me. all that’s you
Gonna live my life right here in this moment
under a sky of blue, under sky of blue

A Sky of Blue

A Sky Of Blue

This is a LIVE one take acoustic version of Johnno Casson aka SnippetCuts track called Wondering, it was recorded on a Tascam handheld recorded April 2020. I have found it today while looking for something else on the Tascam, I let Johnno hear it, he liked it so here it is.
Johnno's wonderful song performed by him here: https://youtu.be/Uv6tunQbw2M

Wondering

Wondering Acoustic Cover Of SnippetCuts Track

If your favourite song on here disappears due to me changing my subscription then just pop along to Bandcamp where you can hear all of my music https://marinaflorance.bandcamp.com
I am a singer/songwriter originally from London, my music crosses a number of genres & has been described as Americana, Folk & Country. While undoubtedly I draw inspiration from many sources, my voice & style are my own.
I've played many festivals, folk clubs, pubs, coffee bars, churches and my live performances are numerous and varied.
Radio play has been extensive from online to National, BBC6Music and BBCIntroducing.
My first album 'Somewhere Down The Line' was funded by Arts Council England, without that financial support all I have done musically would never have happened, the opportunities that have come my way may have just passed me by...

To book me please visit my contact page.

I am currently writing album reviews for FATEA Magazine Blog and in addition to this I really enjoy writing a poem or two (see my blogs page).
I have been a moderator for Tom Robinson's Music Blog (Fresh On The Net between 2019-2024), where I honed my ability to write reviews for other artists across many varied genres.

Blue Boat and Me
In 2022 I self-published the children's book Blue Boat and Me with wonderful illustrations by Annie Clapham. I loved doing this and one day I would love to do another one.

Expectation
Is my latest album, released in 2023. It has received wonderful reviews and been played on National Radio. With contributions from many awesome musicians.
Please put your listening apparatus on and be prepared to cry, laugh, sing, dance and smile with me.

Warm and Toasty Club
I worked with The Warm & Toasty Club between 2017-2019 & along with Jules Fox Allen, we were asked to write six songs based on the memories of residents at retirement complexes along the Essex Coast & in Colchester.
Alongside The Warm & Toasty Club founder, Johnno Casson we won the FATEA Innovation Award  for the lottery & Arts Council funded Memory Afternoons Project.

Fly beyond the border
In March 2018 I independently released my second studio album which features collaborations with Kate Dimbleby & Johnno Casson. The album has received great reviews, Every Woman being one of the most popular with beautiful BVs from Cathryn Craig.

This, That & The Other
Was released in January 2016 on Folkstock Records. The album represented a big leap forward for me as I also recorded & produced it. One of the tracks ‘Little Black Cloud' was selected for the Tom Robinson BBC6 Music Mixtape via 'Fresh On The Net'.
BBC6Music has also played The Moon from the EP ‘my own little piece of the sky’, Waves from 'Expectation' and the single 1974 (That's How It Was In Those Days)

Cry - The Single
I won the Oldies Composers Competition judged by BBC Radio 2 presenters including Bob Harris & the late Sir Terry Wogan to name a few, this resulted in Anthony Head (actor & singer) performing my song 'Cry' live on ITVs This Morning and played on BBC Radio 2, truly wonderful moments for me. Take a look on my collaborations page to read more about it

Festivals
I have played to name a few: Norfolk and Norwich International Festival, Wimborne Festival, Strawberry Fair, Kesgrave, the Cambridge Folk Festival both Club tent and a huge highlight Stage 2 with the great Brian McNeil. 

SoundCloud
I was nominated via Soundcloud as Soundclouder of the day with my song The Guilty One & added to their International Women's Day playlist, this resulted in 10s of thousands of plays for that track.

This track is not available anymore.

Other tracks from Marina Florance